Chapter 7 - The Gate of ReckoningThe rain fell lightly over the iron gates of the Sinclair estate.
Nathaniel stood near the intercom post, his hair soaked, his expensive coat rumpled. He looked nothing like the polished, untouchable billionaire who had stood under the crystal chandeliers of the Grand Wellington Hotel six months ago.
The heavy iron gates hummed softly and swung open.
Nathaniel took a hopeful step forward, but stopped when he saw Victoria walking down the stone driveway alone, holding an umbrella.
"Victoria," Nathaniel choked out, his voice desperate. "Please... just give me five minutes with her. That’s all I’m asking."
Victoria stopped ten feet away, her expression unreadable. "She doesn't want to see you, Nathaniel."
"I was wrong!" Nathaniel shouted over the sound of the rain, tears mixing with the water on his face. "I was a coward! I let my mother dictate my entire life because I was terrified of losing the company! I didn't realize what truly mattered until I watched everything burn to the ground!"
"You didn't realize until you lost your CEO title, Nathaniel," Victoria corrected coldly. "When Emily came to you six months ago, begging for help, you didn't see a human being you loved. You saw a inconvenience to your social standing."
"I loved her!" Nathaniel wailed, clutching the iron bars of the fence. "I still love her! I married her in Nevada because she was the only person in my life who ever looked at me without seeing my family's money! I got terrified, Victoria! My mother threatened to ruin her!"
"Then you should have fought your mother," Victoria said, her tone cutting through his desperate excuses. "You should have stood in front of Emily and shielded her. Instead, you signed a paper to have her declared mentally incompetent so she could be locked away in Vermont."
Nathaniel lowered his head, his body shaking with heavy, shuddering sobs. He dropped the wilted flowers onto the wet pavement.
"Is... is the baby okay?" he whispered softly.
"The baby is thriving," Victoria replied. "No thanks to you or your mother."
Victoria reached into her coat pocket, pulled out a sealed white envelope, and handed it through the iron bars.
Nathaniel took it with trembling hands. "What's this?"
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"It's a formal invitation to the Hayes Global Shareholder Restructuring Meeting next month," Victoria stated. "Emily will be attending as the primary trustee for your child. If you want to show her that you are capable of being a real man, Nathaniel... you will stand in that room and vote against your mother."
Victoria turned on her heel and walked back up the driveway, leaving Nathaniel alone in the rain with his choice.
